Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jun 17:12:1619809.
doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1619809. eCollection 2025.

Association between a dietary index for gut microbiota and breast cancer history in adult women: findings from NHANES 2011-2020

Zhiwei Fan  1 , Liang Li  1 , Lingling Bu  1 , Zhihui Geng  1 , Song Liu  2
Affiliations

Association between a dietary index for gut microbiota and breast cancer history in adult women: findings from NHANES 2011-2020

Zhiwei Fan et al. Front Nutr. .

Abstract

Background: Gut microbiota plays a crucial role in cancer development, yet limited studies have explored microbiota-oriented diets in relation to breast cancer risk. The aim was to investigate the association between a gut microbiota-oriented dietary index (DI-GM) and breast cancer risk among U.S. women.

Methods: This cross-sectional study analyzed data from 6,083 women aged ≥20 years from NHANES 2011-2020. The DI-GM score, based on intake of microbiota-beneficial and microbiota-unfavorable foods, was constructed from 24-h dietary recalls. Breast cancer history was self-reported. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to examine associations. Subgroup analyses assessed potential effect modification.

Results: Higher DI-GM scores were significantly associated with lower odds of breast cancer (adjusted OR = 0.94, 95% CI: 0.89-0.99, p = 0.012). Women with DI-GM scores ≥6 had a 33% lower likelihood of breast cancer compared to those with lower scores (adjusted OR = 0.67, 95% CI: 0.45-0.89, p = 0.006). Subgroup analyses showed consistent associations across age, ethnicity, smoking, alcohol, and BMI categories without significant interactions.

Conclusion: Following a diet that supports a healthy gut microbiota may help reduce the risk of breast cancer. Additional longitudinal and mechanistic research is needed to validate these results.

Keywords: NHANES; breast neoplasms; diet; gut microbiota; nutrition surveys.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scoring methodology for the dietary index for gut microbiota (DI-GM).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Siegel RL, Kratzer TB, Giaquinto AN, Sung H, Jemal A. Cancer statistics, 2025. CA Cancer J Clin. (2025) 75:10–45. doi: 10.3322/caac.21871, PMID: - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lofterød T, Frydenberg H, Flote V, Eggen AE, McTiernan A, Mortensen ES, et al. Exploring the effects of lifestyle on breast cancer risk, age at diagnosis, and survival: the EBBA-life study. Breast Cancer Res Treat. (2020) 182:215–27. doi: 10.1007/s10549-020-05679-2, PMID: - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Roy R, Chun J, Powell SN. BRCA1 and BRCA2: different roles in a common pathway of genome protection. Nat Rev Cancer. (2011) 12:68–78. doi: 10.1038/nrc3181, PMID: - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Viswanathan S, Parida S, Lingipilli BT, Krishnan R, Podipireddy DR, Muniraj N. Role of gut microbiota in breast Cancer and drug resistance. Pathogens. (2023) 12:468. doi: 10.3390/pathogens12030468, PMID: - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Gamba G, Colonetti T, Uggioni MLR, Elibio LU, Balbinot EL, Heinzen R, et al. Gut microbiota and breast cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis. Breast Cancer. (2025) 32:242–57. doi: 10.1007/s12282-024-01658-3, PMID: - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources